RWBY: The Origins of Team AUTM
by kodd1000
Summary: The short story of a team unknown for their talent at Beacon Academy. Learn how they came to be, what their involvement is with Team RWBY, and just how the two will combine to make an even more powerful force.
1. In The Beginning (Prologue)

**Author's Note: This is a very new story. I have it written down at the moment and I'm trying to get it written into this website. I hope you will all enjoy it once it is finally finished. So far, I have the entire prologue written out. That is it. I know it is short, and to be honest, my whole story will probably be short. It seems a lot more lengthy in writing than on the computer. This is my FIRST story I have ever written so please give any feedback that you feel is necessary. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy.**

RWBY: The Origins of Team AUTM

Prologue: In the Beginning

Mankind is quite fond of retelling stories of heroes, legends even. In this world, however, power belongs simply to the one who wields the power of Dust. Dust is exactly what its name implies, but with a whole different meaning in this world.

Simply put, Dust would supercharge any weapon. It could fire a bullet strong enough to backfire across an entire field. It could even be used to imbue a magical sword, a rapier, with the four elements of water, air, earth, and fire. These are only a couple of possibilities of the potential Dust could be used for. Due to the extreme power it contained, great thieves also sought to acquire it.

It just happened that night that the thief known as Roman Torchwick had decided to make a stop into a shop named "From Dust Til' Dawn". The shop was a trading point for those who needed to stock up on Dust, due to its expendability. As he looked up at the sign, he began to think of all the endless things he would be able to do with the Dust.


	2. Small Expectations

Chapter 2: Small Expectations

As he approached the store, he turned to one of his henchmen. "Gary, I don't want any trouble. This should be easy with the old man." The man simply nodded and awaited further command. With that, Roman advanced into the store.

The inside of the store was nothing too big, but also not limited. It had a wide variety of magazines, ranging from short stories to informational articles. Many people bought _Dust Informer_, a magazine listing monthly new-found uses for Dust. Another popular short story others ought was named _Dust: An Elysian Tail_, which followed the adventures of a greatly troubled soldier. This late at night, the store was tended by a very old man who held a great appreciation for Dust. He was surprised when a customer came into his store.

Gary wondered why he was there. After all, he had been informed that the only person there would be the old man. _Could Roman not take him singlehandedly, _he wondered. While he continued to dwell on those thoughts, he entered the shop with Roman. Roman approached the counter where the man stood. With his hands, he quickly drew a dust pistol and aimed it at the old man who raised his hands in alarm. "I believe you have something I require", Roman said in a low voice. "Please", the old man said, "just take my money and leave." Gary, becoming bored with the usual hold up, moved to scan the store for others. He noticed a girl in the back, one who looked small and weak.

For a moment, he stood there confused. The girl had her back to him. She wore a red and black outfit with a cape. Even her hair was a dark reddish outline among the black hair she had. She was wearing headphones, so Gary moved toward her, drawing his scimitar blade as he advanced.

_Oh cool,_ thought the girl, _a new magazine of Dust Informer_! She thought of all the ways she might improve Crescent Rose. Without warning, she was roughly yanked backwards and she angrily removed her headphones. "Yes?" she said. "Put your hands in the air", Gary said. "Are you", she hesitated for a moment, "robbing me?" Angrily, he yelled, "Yes!" She simply looked at him. "Oh." Playing along, she motioned him to move forward. With his back to her, she kicked him with a force of a trained warrior. Screaming, Gary flew through the window and landed outside the store. He was surprised, then, when he saw a figure fly past him. Standing, he watched as a monstrous weapon transformed into its true form. She had unsheathed Crescent Rose.

_Finally, _she thought, _back into action with my favorite thing_! She glanced around and noticed Roman and three henchmen running out of the store. She shot Crescent Rose. With its scythe shape, the strong shot threw her towards the first henchman. She quickly smashed into him. Following this move, she performed a vertical one-eighty, crushing the second guard beneath the blade. As the final guard fired upon her, she quickly shot her weapon in three different spots, causing her to take a serpentine motion towards him as she knocked him out. Now only she and Roman remained in the opening.


	3. An Average Autumn Day

Chapter 3: An Average Autumn Day

Alex stood up from the table he was sitting at. As he did so, his three partners joined him. "Did you hear that?" Midnight said. "It sounds", Tris said, "as if an attack is taking place." At this, Uriah added in, "This is hardly the time of night to be fighting." As he said this, a massive airship hovered through the sky towards the fighting. Alex smirked at Uriah. "You were saying?" They all laughed. "Come on", he said, "let's go check it out."

"You were worth every cent, truly you were", Roman muttered as he took one last look at his dead guard. He looked up at girl. "Well, Red, many things have made it quite an eventful evening. As much as I'd love to stay-", he said raising his cane which in turn opened up a reticle, "this is where we say goodbye." The girl, sensing danger, quickly shot upward into the air. She narrowly dodged an explosive blast that came from Roman's cane. She looked up to see Roman had disappeared. Looking behind her, she spotted him climbing a ladder and followed. Blasting herself to the rooftop, she shouted while her voice cracked, "HEY!" Roman cursed. "Persistent." As he said it, a hovercraft appeared and Roman hopped on. The girl simply stared in awe, at a loss for words. "End of the line, Red!" he yelled. He tossed a dust-filled crystal at her and took aim. "Look out!" was all the girl heard before she was knocked aside by a pair of arms while a blast shook the ground where she had been.

She shook her head and saw the ship retreating. This quickly changed when she noticed that she was pinned by her rescuer, a boy who's face had landed just a little too close to hers for comfort. "Uh, um" he stuttered, "sorry." He lifted himself up and helped her up. "What's your name?" She answered, "Ruby, Ruby Rose. Thank you for saving-", she looked back and saw three others, "um, who are they?" Looking back, he quickly said, "Oh, I'm sorry! Ruby, these are my teammates Uriah, Tris, and Midnight. I'm Alex, the leader of Team AUTM." Ruby immediately grew interest. "Oh! Team? Do you all attend the prestigious Beacon?" One of the girls spoke up. "Well, I don't know about prestigious. After all, we do have Uriah over there." She laughed. "Tris! That's mean." However, he also laughed. Midnight looked at Ruby. "We have all before made fun of one another. It just happens" Ruby stood in awkward silence. She finally decided to talk. "So, where are you guys-?" she was saying when she was cut off by a new voice. "RUBY ROSE! Come with me please." It was a huntress, a female trained in the arts of fighting the Grimm, the evil creatures in the world. "We have much to discuss."


	4. Assembling a Team

Chapter 4: Assembling a Team

Ruby wondered about Team AUTM. She had plans to become a master scythe-wielder in order to be worthy of attending Beacon. Beacon was the most prestigious school that specialized in training future huntsman and huntresses. Ruby had always dreamed of becoming a huntress even in her early childhood. Despite how eager she was, she still had two full years before she could apply to Beacon.

She was led into a room by the mysterious huntress and she sat in the only chair in the room. In a quiet voice, she politely asked, "Am I in some sort of trouble? Did I do something wrong?" Simply staring, as if judging her, she replied in a monotone voice. "Why are you out late at night causing fights?" Ruby, angry at the accusation, simply yelled, "He started it!" "Ruby, my name is Glynda Goodwitch and someone has come to meet you." As she said this, Ruby heard the footsteps as a tall man moved into the room. He was holding cookies and milk, which he set down on the table. "Ruby Rose." He stared at her for a moment. "You have silver eyes." Ruby, confused, stuttered. "Uh, um-""So, Ruby", he said inquiringly, "where did you learn skills like this?" He held up an IPad, which somehow was replaying the whole scene as it had played out that night. "Sig-Signal Academy", she said slowly, faking a smile. "Why does a young lady need fighting skills such as these?" "Well, I'd like to become a huntress!" Glynda sighed. The man continued. "Do you know who I am?" "You're Professor Ozpin, headmaster at Beacon Academy", she said happily. "Hello", he said with a grin. "Nice to meet you", she replied. "So, you want to come to my school?" "More than anything!" Ruby said dreamily. "Alright, but you must form your own team from the already accepted initiates. You will lead them." Ruby, caught in the moment, missed the part about leading. "Yes sir! I will be seeing you soon!" She hurried out of the room.

"Haha, you were so red, Alex!" "Oh, shut it Madeline. At least I did something." "You're right! I think that was the closest you've ever been to a girl" Alex ignored Madeline. She was only joking, but the words had offended him still. He and his team continued down the street. It was late, but that didn't prevent them from going out. After all, they had weapons on them for defense. Alex was sad, though. That girl, Ruby, had shown so much talent that he wouldn't even see until he was a senior at Beacon. That also depends upon her acceptance to Beacon. He was walking around a corner when he was toppled over sideways by someone. He heard the others laugh.

He opened his eyes after the impact of his back to the ground He looked straight into the eyes of… Ruby? She had toppled over onto him! Eyes wide she quickly got up and raised him up with tremendous strength. "Wow!", he said, "you got some real strength there!" "Thanks," she said, "so, I was wondering if you guys could help me out." Madeline seemed intrigued. "How can we help?" she replied. Ruby continued on "I need to gather a team for myself." "Why?" asked Tris, "you still have two years of training before worrying about stuff like that." Ruby recounted the story of her meeting while the others listened quietly. When she finished, Uriah whistled. "Not many meet Ozpin, especially when you aren't at Beacon." "I know!" her voice cracked, "so do you know any possible people I could enlist?"

After Ruby got some pen and paper, they began giving suggestions. "I, for one," said Uriah, "know of a girl named Blake, She moves fast, but was spotted in Forever Falls Forest. You might find her." "Yes", Alex said, "and I know a girl, Weiss. She is nice enough if you aren't on her bad side." "Hmmm", wondered Tris, "You don't have any family going in to Beacon, do you?" Ruby began counting with her fingers. "Three makes four", she muttered to herself. She looked up happily. "Thanks, you guys! Maybe I'll see you soon around Beacon!" "Perhaps," Alex said, "You can show off more of your ability" Ruby laughed. "I plan to! Well, I have to run. My team needs assembling." They all waved as she disappeared down another street. Team AUTM knew it was a night and headed home.


	5. No Time Left

Chapter 5: No Time Left

Ruby was lost. She didn't know where to find any of her potential teammates. After all, Alex had forgotten to mention where Weiss could be found. Besides that, Blake was apparently on the move, similar to the behavior of her sister Yang. Feeling a bit discouraged and resigned, she decided to head home. She had done enough for one night.

She was sad when the motorcycle turned off. Travelling always gave Yang time to think. She hardly got any of that these days since she hardly got a moment's rest. The place she just stopped at promised that she would not be getting to rest any time soon. As she looked up the stairs towards the nightclub, she began to wonder why she was there in the first place.

Alex sat on his bed in the team dorm. He couldn't stop thinking about Ruby. How could one girl be mixed up in so much trouble? He hoped she would succeed so he could see her at Beacon sometime. He knew she had what it would take to become a true Huntress in time. He also wondered what those criminals were doing. They had attacked the store, not Ruby. They had even acquired what they had gone there for. What would they be doing with all of those materials? With endless thoughts streaming through his head, he said goodnight to his teammates and fell asleep.

_He wakes up on the ground, feeling the damp grass. Feeling disoriented, he stands up and looks around. He is in a meadow. _Oh no, _he thinks. Suddenly, he looks around in fear, the place now all too familiar to him. Before he can react, he hears that same piercing scream, the one he relives with every additional nightmare. He turns to find his mother in the claws of a Beowulf. He attempts to pull out his weapon and fight, but the Beowulf has already retreated, his mother in hand. He stands there, stunned, as he listens to her continue to scream. There is nothing else in the world at that moment. She screams, and screams, and screams…_

He bolted upright, sweat beading on his face as he pants loudly. Then, remembering his teammates are still asleep, quickly attempted to silence his distress. He stood up and headed out the door to take a stroll outside the dorm around Beacon. He stood outside, feeling the cold air of winter on his back. It was snowing outside and it was hard to see anything beyond the walls. In a way, it was peaceful. There was nothing else in the world at that moment, only him and the snow. As he continued to listen to the quiet snowfall, he heard a rustle. Quickly, he turned and looked towards the source of the sound, expecting trouble of some sort. Instead, he found someone standing there and looking at him curiously.


	6. The Wanderer

Chapter 6: The Wanderer

Ruby was walking down the sidewalk, still wondering what she was going to do about the teammates. She had asked around the town, seeing if she could find anyone with details about her potential teammates, to no avail. She found a flower shop, _Schnee's Florist Company_, and got excited. She was looking for Yang Xiao Long, Blake Belladonna, and most importantly right at that moment, Weiss_ Schnee_. She saw a young woman tending to flowers inside. She seemed Ruby's age, if not having a few more years. Figuring it had to be Weiss, she walked into the flower shop to meet her new friend.

Yang walked up to the nightclub, the doors opening wide in front of her. She walked towards the bar and asked for a drink. While she waited, she looked around. The nightclub was a fair size compared to any other, not too big or too small. She looked up, and at a unique location, at the top of the room, hung a balcony with a D.J. who was keeping the beat. She noticed many guards standing around bored, but yet not many people around. _Doesn't anyone come to these nightclubs anymore? Where is everybody? _The bartender gave her a drink, Yang thanking her. She sat there, drinking. Suddenly, the beat from the D.J. stopped. Looking upward, she saw that he had disappeared. _What? It's only just begun. What's going on around here? _She heard a sound fly past her right ear. _Whoosh. _Swirling, she found a dart impaled in the wall. Eyes wide, she faced back and did a cartwheel to dodge the next incoming dart. She ducked behind a column as cover from her attackers. With adrenaline surging through her, she loaded Ember Celica, her shotgun gauntlets. Loaded with six shells on each wrist, she was prepared to face whoever dared to attack her. She came out from behind the column facing the right side and fired off two shots toward the other side. She saw movement to the left and quickly returned to her column to switch sides. Looking this way, she saw nothing once again. She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned around in an instant, fire burning in her eyes. Standing there was a girl, smaller than Yang, who wore a red dress with red heels as well. Yang studied her. _How can this girl possibly be my assailant? She is wearing heels and a dress. No way she could have moved so fast without me noticing. _Before she could ask who the girl was, she was punched in the stomach and flew across the room. The last thing she saw as she looked up was the girl loading another blow-dart and shooting it across the room into Yang's shoulder. Despite the fear and adrenaline that continued to flow through Yang, she soon began to see black and could no longer keep consciousness.

Alex looks at her. She has long, wavy black hair, and her eyes are amber, complemented by light-purple eye shadow flaring backwards. She is also wearing a black ribbon tied in the form of a bow. As always_, _he thinks, _if only she could take off that bow once and for all. _He continued to look her up and down as he always did, from the black buttoned vest to the black low-heeled boots. "Hello Alex", she says quietly. "Blake", he replies, not at all surprised that she would happen by him at midnight. She was a wanderer. What she was doing at that particular moment that she once again stumbled by the courtyard he was standing in? Well, anyone's guess was as good as his. "I am so tired of running, of being hunted." She says it with distaste. There were those words again. _She is only a girl who wants a normal life, _he thought. However, the way she was born would always keep that from happening. She was a Faunus, a species despised by many and unfairly treated. "Blake, I could have a solution. Maybe you could finally have a chance!" He is referring of course to Beacon. _She could apply, join Ruby, what better way to make a win-win of this situation. _"Why don't you join us at Beacon?" He suggests. She looks away, standing there in the cold chill of the night. She considers it while Alex stands there wondering as always what goes through her mysterious mind. "Who would even accept me? They would eventually learn, turn against me", she says. "No", he replies quickly, "I met this girl today named Ruby. She is an exceptional fighter. She claims she will be entering Beacon two years early due to her skills, but needs a team in order to prove herself." Blake continues to listen eagerly, while Alex happily spills the details onward, knowing he has her attention. "You and her", he says, "are not too entirely different. You both have special situations. She seems like a nice girl and I bet she would accept you even if she were to find out your secret." Blake turns around and says, "Where is this girl now? I need to speak to her, learn of her true intent." Alex sighs, knowing that Blake is on her guard at all times. "She should be somewhere down in Vale. Her house is in the inner circle of the city and you should find her pretty easily. She walks around a lot during the day." Blake looks at Alex suspiciously. "How do you know all of this? I thought you just met her?" "Uriah knows Yang, who just so happens to be her sister", he offers. "He asked her about Ruby, how we might contact her if things were to show some opportunity for her. You just so happen to be in the market." "Sounds like it has potential", Blake whispers facing the other way, then looks back at Alex, "I'll see you around. I have some things to attend to." Without another word, she is a black silhouette disappearing in the shadows. _I'm doing just fine too, thanks for asking, _he thinks. _After all, someone who is perfectly fine just walks out in the middle of the night to think. _She might not know his troubles, but he wasn't entirely too sure if anybody should know them anyhow. He sat there, continuing once again to stare into the night, with his troubling thoughts.


	7. Making New Friends Every Day

Chapter 7: Making New Friends Every Day

Alex woke to the sounds of two voices yelling in his room. He groaned as he sat up, looking towards the direction of where the sound was coming from, not at all surprised to see Tris and Uriah arguing. He had to admit that the timing was rather a surprising element of it, but the arguing never ended with those two. _I'm surprised they haven't even run out of stuff to argue about at this point_¸ he thought to himself. "I will not be convinced," Tris said adamantly, "that _Dust Informer _is wrong! It's an official magazine! They can't be the ones who are wrong. Just admit you are!" Uriah laughed at her, "You can't believe everything they tell you. They are people just like us!" He said confidently, "Surely even they can have their moments where they mess up as well. Therefore, I am right." He crossed his arms confidently with a smug look on his face. Alex interrupted there conversation, shouting over to them. "Hey, do you all mind? You guys stole something from me; I believe it is something called sleep." They both muttered to themselves silently, probably both complaining that they were right still. "Anyways", Alex said in a more serious tone, "it's time we made sure preparations are complete for the training room face-off tomorrow." He moved over and shook Midnight awake from her nap. "How you even managed to sleep through that, I'll never know", he said in an exhausted manner. "What?" Midnight looked around groggily, still not quite awake. "Quick head count for tomorrow everyone", Alex said firmly, "Uriah, you are first up. Do you have your dual blades set for tomorrow?" Uriah nodded happily. "Tris, do you have your staff prepared and trained to deal out some pain?" Tris shrugged. "I might head out one more time to practice with it before we meet again in the training room", she said casually. "Ok," Alex said, happy that his teammates were prepared so well, "that leaves you, Midnight. How is your dagger coming along?" Midnight looked at him more focused now that she was fully awake. "As usual, my skills as an assassin are all it comes to when I'm on the battlefield. I will be running a few more approaches against myself later in the courtyard to prepare. I'll be ready when the time comes tomorrow." Alex nodded towards his team, happy with his progress. He thought back to the time he had become a leader, and just how scared he had been when he first accepted the position. Looking at them, now, he knew there was no place he would rather be than with them.

Ruby walked up to the line that was in front of the counter, finding it sad that she would have to wait to meet her new friend. As the time passed, however, she finally made her way to the front. Looking at the name tag the girl was wearing, Ruby's spirits were instantly crushed. Her name tag read, _Winter Rose_. _That's okay! _Ruby thought quickly. _Maybe she doesn't like going by Weiss. It isn't really that common anyways. _"Hello!" Winter said happily with a wide smile, "How may I help you today?" Ruby was flustered by the attention, for some reason always nervous to speak with others. "Um, hi. I'd like to talk to you about someone I'm looking for. Are you by chance Weiss? I mean," she added quickly, "I know your tag says Winter and all." Winter laughed at Ruby. _Man, _Ruby thought, _this girl is full of positive energy. _"No", Winter said, quickly saddening Ruby, "I am Winter, and that is my only name I go by. Perhaps you are referring to a certain sister of mine." She smiled wide at Ruby. "Weiss Schnee would never be caught tending to flowers in a store like this. No, she is probably off at the local library, studying in her silly books on how to become a better huntress. I don't understand it all, but she acts like she knows what she is doing, so I don't bother her." Ruby quickly found interest again at the possible mention of Weiss being nearby. "I need to talk to her, would you mind giving me directions to the library?" Winter looked at Ruby suspiciously. "Why are you so eager to see her," Winter said. Ruby quickly recounted all of her adventures lately to catch Winter up. With all of this out in the open, Winter happily gave Ruby the address to the specific library that Weiss could be found at and Ruby headed out to find her teammate once again.

She looked up at the castle, curious as to how she was going to manage her way into the building. _There is no way I'm leaving without that intel_, she thought. Moving to the left, she quickly scanned the outer walls for any open areas that she could climb. It took her a few minutes, but she finally spotted a position higher up, one that was just close enough that she could reach it with her weapon Gambol Shroud. She pulled it out and shot upward near the opening. It latched on instantly, allowing her to climb her way up the castle firmly. She reached the top, feeling a sense of momentary dread realizing she was alone. No one would rescue her if she was caught. _I won't be getting caught anyways, a simple in and out recon mission._ She leaped over to a balcony near her. Making it onto the balcony, she turned and leaned her head near the windows to see what was inside. Seeing that no one was in the room, she silently forced the door open using the blade of Gambol Shroud to her advantage. Smirking with her success of breaking in, she continued forward, not looking back.

"Pancakes!" Nora exclaimed when Phyrra asked what she should make for breakfast. She loved this time of morning, when she was fully awake and ready to make another day count. She looked across the room to Ren, where he sat silently, reading a book and meditating. Where would she be without him? As long as she could remember, he had always been there with her, following every step of the way into whatever crazy adventure life threw at them next. A door flew open and Jaune Arc walked in, completing their team. She jumped up and was hugging him before he knew what hit him. "Jaune! Good moooooorning!" She hadn't gotten to see him before he had already headed into the shower. "Man", he answered, "I sure am glad I dress in the room before I come out." Nora giggled.

Phyrra looked around at her teammates, figuring they were all awake enough now to where she could actually get a point across. "Ok, team", she said, "gather around. We need to talk." They all sat on the beds near where Ren had already set up. "Ok, we need to make sure we are ready for the face-off tomorrow. We are beginning to make a name for ourselves, and it will end here if we lose tomorrow." They all stared at her, still silent. _It is too hard trying to actually lead as opposed to just being an equal to them_, she thought suddenly. "That being said", she continued, "I'm only going to tell you all this once. I need you all to be ready on your own terms and meet at the training room tomorrow. I know that we all respect each other in this team and we treat each other like family. Therefore, we won't let one another down. Make sure you are well rested and trained. We will crush any opposition tomorrow if we meet those goals. That is all." She walked away towards the door, not leaving room for any other comments. She was testing her team. This was the first time she had ever left them on her own. Since she had arrived at Beacon, however, she was known as the star student. As such, many students claimed that her team only succeeded because she was a leader, which to some degree may have been true. _That, however, _she thought nervously, _will soon be decided whether or not it is true. _She shut the door behind her and headed to find some food on the campus, leaving her teammates to their own plans.

**In loving memory of Monty Oum. This story is only one of many examples of what his work has inspired, of what will continue to move forward even after he is gone. **

**#KeepMovingForward**


	8. Training Preparations

Chapter 8: Training Preparations

Alex closed the door shut behind him and he started walking down the hallway. He had no idea what to do today. He was still tired from the night before. He hadn't had anymore nightmares in the recent nights, but he knew they were going to come back. They always would, especially when he wasn't prepared for them. He woke up several times in the night, unsure why he couldn't fall asleep. At one point, he had decided to walk outside, but simply stared into the night uninterrupted. He headed towards the courtyard again, deciding he would sit down and enjoy the nice weather, which was quite a change of pace compared to the cold, howling nights he gathered in.

Yang woke up on a cold stone floor. Everything around her, in fact, was made of stone, save for the iron bars keeping her barred in. _I love the variety_, she thought. She attempted to push herself up, her whole figure feeling like it was weighted down by chains. _Wait a minute, _she thought as she tried to lift her hand up and felt a yank backwards as she couldn't go any farther, _these are chains! _She yanked as hard as she could on them. She could barely stand, the weight of the chains holding her down to the point where she almost couldn't stand at all. _Surprisingly, I don't find this to be any worse than the last time I went to a nightclub, _she thought matter-of-factly. How did things turn out like this? She had gone to plenty of nightclubs before and never once been kidnapped. What made this one any different? Frustrated, Yang tugged at her hair, even managing to pull out a few strands. She stared at them blankly, saddened that nothing happened when she pulled her hair out. It isn't like she expected anything to become of it. Then she saw it, a window that had bars on a wall beside her. Outside, she could see nothing but dark clouds, despite it obviously being daytime. After that, however, nothing else remained. _A door and a window, _Yang thought, _and even chains! I love the excitement that you can bring a girl. _She sat there silently for a few moments, then began to grow tired. She knew of no way she was going to get herself out of this one. As she began to nod off, she could have sworn she heard faint noises on the outside wall followed by a noise above her head. As she closed her eyes, she could only think one thing. _Is someone scaling these walls?_

When he reached the courtyard, Alex spotted a figure silently training. He immediately recognized Midnight's dark hair and agile stance she was using to train for the upcoming fight. The way she was built, Alex found no surprise in the fact that she would assume the position of assassin in their group, always striking from the shadows while also just as efficient in hand-to-hand combat. He walked up to her and shook his head. "How does one train to be an assassin without even having a target," he asked. Midnight froze, probably in shock that someone had caught her off guard so easily. "Well," she said slowly, "it is rather hard. You just run drills against yourself and pretend someone is there. You don't know whether it pays off or not until the real deal." He shrugged. "Well," Alex said sarcastically, "if only someone would be here for you to test your skills on." As he finished saying this, he pointed towards himself with both of his hands to emphasize his point. "It isn't as if I have anything else to do. I feel ready for tomorrow," he said confidently, "nothing wrong with helping a teammate do the same." He looked away from her towards the looming school that was Beacon, just to admire how large it was. _That's my school, _he thought, _I wonder which is bigger: the size of it or the knowledge held within. _"So," Alex said turning back towards Midnight, "what do you say we-" he cut off. Midnight was nowhere to be seen. He silently crouched into a defensive position, watching his back. He should have known that if he offered and then turned his back that Midnight wouldn't miss the opportunity. It was her move now, seeing as he was in full defensive stance ready to hold off against her. However, he was terrified, for the courtyard held many tall bushes and walls along with a few select statues. All of these would easily conceal Midnight from his view and he would have to be careful to navigate his way out if he wanted to test her skills to act under time. The goal was plain and simple. He had to reach the exit to the courtyard without being snuck up on. He saw the exit to the courtyard just through an archway. It was so close this was almost too easy. He moved under it and headed towards the exit, failing to watch his back. As he headed under the archway, he heard a figure land on the ground from above, gripping him from behind before he could react. A dagger found its way to rest right underneath his neck. "Woah! I'm still just a practice dummy," he said panicked by the practice simulation. Midnight laughed behind him and sheathed her dagger. "You dare to leave me such an opportunity", she said quietly. Alex noticed she hadn't let him go yet. "Um, Midnight", he said cautiously, "why are you still holding me?" He could feel her figure against him and he was starting to feel his cheeks turning red. However, his statement snapped Midnight out of her small trance. "What," she said in a disoriented fashion, "Oh, sorry!" He turned to look at her, though she wouldn't meet his eyes. He felt the need to break the silence. "Well," Alex said, "you seem well prepared for tomorrow. Keep that up and we will win with no problems." He decided to walk the other way and see what his other teammates were up to. He felt bad as he walked on and acted like he didn't hear the thanks that she muttered back towards him.

Ruby approached the library. It was two stories, one of the bigger libraries found in Vale. It didn't help her search, however, when the building was one more story higher than she had expected. _Oh well, _Ruby thought, _if I have a shred of luck, my first teammate will be somewhere in there. _Upon entering the library, she was surrounded by the quiet atmosphere, one she wasn't usually used to. She enjoyed noisy environments just to keep herself occupied. She looked over to the older section, figuring that was about where Weiss would be found. She saw a map nearby and was immediately able to rule out half of the entire first floor. It was a massive children's books section. She looked up and down the rows of books as she searched for Weiss. When she reached the end of the line, she scanned the tables and gasped. Sitting over there at a table was a young girl in white. She was studying a book intently, unaware of Ruby approaching her. "Excuse me," Ruby asked politely, "might you be Weiss Schnee?" The girl sighed. "What do I have to do to get a moment of peace in this library?" She looked up from the book. "Who are you," she asked coldly. "Um, well, I," Ruby stuttered, "I'm Ruby." She recounted her story of her travels to Weiss. At the end of it all, Weiss simply stared at her with an annoyed look on her face. _Wow, this is my soon to be teammate? _Ruby wondered. After a long period of silence, Weiss finally broke the silence. "Well, I suppose I could turn you down, but it isn't every day that someone makes it into Beacon two years before they should. All right, Ruby Rose, I will join your team. What's next?" Ruby was so excited she almost forgot how to talk. "Okay! I will keep in touch with you. You are the first of three people I need to find. Do you know where I could find some people named Yang Xiao Long or Blake Belladonna? They are the two I was recommended", she said hopefully. Weiss responded, "Well, I don't know if I've ever heard of any names like that. I can't help you there." "Here," she said, handing Ruby a card, "this is where you can contact me when you are ready to." Ruby looked down at the card and almost laughed. It was the card for the florist shop. "Did you miss the part where I found you by going to this shop?" She said amusingly. "You dolt," Weiss responded, "think. If you found me with that shop once, wouldn't you think Winter could manage to point you towards me again? Besides, I visit there all the time to visit my sister." As she said this, she got up. "Well, I suppose it is time I headed home, hopefully to study up more on my skills to become a huntress, seeing as I'm enlisted now." Ruby said her goodbyes and headed out the door to head and meet Alex.

Uriah and Tris were sparring with each other in the training room. He loved to spar with her, because she provided more challenge than any of his other teammates. Well, most of them. Midnight didn't count because she used sneak attacks. _Where is the fun in sneaking up_, he thought curiously, _you don't even get any action._ Uriah swung his dual daggers towards Tris, who deflected them with her staff which had split into two with a chain at the middle. They were both wearing armor that would hold back any hits that did land on them. Uriah quickly dropped to the ground and used his feet to sweep Tris off of hers. Tris, disoriented by the fall, did nothing to defend herself as Uriah landed two hits straight into her simultaneously. She felt the dull pain through the armor, but it went as quickly as it came. "Congratulations, once again, Uriah," she said sadly, "you beat me once again!" Uriah felt bad. _Aren't you supposed to let the girl win? _"Tris," he hesitated, "why don't we go again? You are bound to beat me one of these times." Tris sighed, but smiled suddenly. "First to three," she said suddenly. Uriah was surprised. They never did three straight matches in a row. "You're on," he said, grinning. Before he knew what was happening, Tris was pummeling into him, pushing him across the room to the wall. He narrowly dodged her staff as she sent it flying down towards the spot where he had just been. He jumped up, getting into a defensive stance. He decided instead to attack, much to his demise. She countered his attack and turned him so his back was to her. With the simple opening, she swung her staff and swiped him in the stomach. He fell over with a surprised gasp and landed hard on the ground. Tris offered her hand to help him up. "Well, well, someone isn't on top of their game today." Uriah looked at her, seeing her pride. "Oh settle down," he said, "you said best of three." They both smiled at each other as they positioned for the third round.

Blake moved into the castle and looked around. There were a couple of desks and chairs in the room she was in, making it seem like an office. However, everything was stone besides that. She looked through the desks, searching for the file she was looking for. Frustrated with not finding her objective, she slammed the last desk shut. She stomped down towards the door to a long hallway. She looked steadily down the corridor. She had no cover and if someone were to spot her, she would be in a tight spot. She quickly dashed down the hallway, but stopped when she heard a door open. She looked towards the sound, seeing a door fully opened and a figure coming out. Blake crouched into her combat position, unsheathing Gambol Shroud and ready to fight. However, she was thrown off guard by the unstartling approach of the stranger. Rather than looking surprised by her appearance in the castle, the girl that approached through the door seemed as if she were ready for Blake. Blake didn't let this throw her off for long, and before much longer noticed a strange detail. _Is she wearing red heels and a dress? This might just be easier than I expected._


End file.
